Your Book's First Chapter

This is it.

You've got an idea of your novel's plot, and designs for all your characters. You've decided what POV you want to write in.

The document is open, and before you is a blank page waiting to be filled with all you've worked so hard to create. It's your time to breathe life into the keyboard at your fingertips.

But....what exactly do you start with?

I know how hard it was for me to decide on the first lines of my first novel. There's just so much pressure! To catch the attention of potential readers browsing bookstores, your book's first lines must plant a question in people's minds and make them want to find out what happens next. And even before that, during the editing and publishing process, any potential agents or editors will base their impression of your writing solely on the first chapter.

You'll need to keep in mind that, although your entire novel will be going through some rewriting later down the road, it's your first chapter that's likely to be rewritten the most. This is because, as you go on writing your novel, you'll become a better and better writer until you begin to see more mistakes in earlier writing. That's perfectly normal, so don't think you're going backwards if you're constantly rewriting your first lines. Just remember to put progress in every day, and to accept that everything doesn't need to be perfect.

Now, before I start, here's something that I should mention: you may or may not have your book's title at this point, but it's alright either way. Sometimes it's actually better to write the book before giving it a title, because the title is usually a hint at the book's plot or premise.

Okay, let's get right into things!

To start off with, I've found an article on a great website called Write it Sideways...

...that explains the recipe to an awesome first chapter much better than I can. I'm sharing the list below, directly from the website.

All rights and respects to Suzannah Windsor Freeman, who wrote the article!

Use this as a checklist for your novel's first chapter, before and after you start writing it, and you'll definitely be catching peoples' attention.

-It (your book's first chapter) provides key information, but doesn't give away too much, too quickly

-A great deal of energy is placed into the first paragraph--the place where readers decide whether they will stay or go.

-It begins with something interesting–not necessarily the main conflict, but something important to the rest of the story.

-It immediately captures reader’s interest with a hook, but that doesn’t necessarily have to be action.

-It sets the tone for the rest of the novel.

-The main characters are introduced, but we’re not bombarded with too many characters at once

-It reveals the story’s setting

-It establishes the narrator’s voice and point of view.

Read this carefully and keep it all in mind for when you write your first chapter, because this recipe can be found in most bestselling novels--both present and past.

Another important thing to remember is this: do NOT, under any circumstances, start your first chapter with a character's backstory.

This is the absolute worst way to begin a book and a big red flag to both readers and agents.

The backstory is, basically, the past--an orgin story, a summary of the character's life up till now........A.K.A, a serious bore.

Let me give you an example. Out of these two first lines to a novel, which one would make you want to keep reading the most?

"My mother was a simple woman who didn't believe in violence. She told us it was wrong to fight back, and better to turn the other cheek. The idea didn't take us very long to understand. It was likely because of this that I grew up to be a pacifist, unwilling to confront the bullies at my school like my twin brother did. I remember one incident years ago where they were sticking gum in my ponytails and I just sat there crying, waiting for them to stop."

or....

"I sat in a little plastic chair with tears in my eyes, fighting to keep them from streaming down my cheeks. I sniffled and shook, ducking my head so it was almost in my lunchbox. Three older boys towered over me, laughing, taunting, and tugging at my dark brown ponytails. I didn't know what they were doing, but it didn't matter. Mommy always said it was wrong to fight bullies, and besides, I couldn't even if I wanted to."

Although the first opening wouldn't be terrible, present narrative is always more intriguing. Placing readers in the moment and making them ask questions instead of answering questions for them usually works better to pull them into your story. Your readers should ask, 'why is this happening?', 'how did this happen?', and 'what will happen next?'

I understand that you want your readers to know about the main character's past and how they are how they are, but at this point, your readers simply don't care. You need to introduce some plot first, and slowly reveal more of your character's personality and backstory as you go along. In fact, it's better that, for the first chapter, you do no more than hint at the character's backstory. In spite of what you may think, readers don't have to know much about what's going on in order to be interested. Holding back information encourages curiosity in your readers, thus creating suspense or anticipation. And since making whoever reads your book want to keep going is the key to success, this is probably a good idea for you as a writer.

Oh, before I go, I'd like to give credit to Write it Sideways again. Although the list above was the only thing I took from the website, that list was still the basis for this blog post and, overall, very good advice.

I hope reading this helps you, and that you all have a great rest of the weekend!

Stay tuned for the article next week! ;)

#writing #novel #howtowrite